History of Iron Age swords and scabbards, £85.00
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Sudan Past and Present: From the Islamic Period to the Modern World
Beaded Neck Ornament
Pastoralist peoples of southern Sudan, such as the Dinka, have little representational art. They concentrate instead on adorning their own bodies and those of their beloved cattle - with which they have a close spiritual relationship. They do this through body painting and the wearing of beaded necklaces, neck and shoulder ornaments and other jewellery made of ostrich shell, ivory and metal. Corsets tightly encasing the torso are also worn, mainly by men.
This finery conforms to fashion, accentuating the natural form of the body, and also reveals a great deal about the age, achievements and social standing of the wearer. In common with other pastoralist peoples of East Africa, Dinka men pass through an age-grade system. Its various stages require certain codes of conduct to be observed and certain kinds of adornment to be displayed which indicate the individual's status in society. Different coloured beads and slightly different styles of beadwork are worn by men to indicate these transitions.
This particular neck ornament, with its central band of patterned Venetian beads and brass cartridge cases, would be worn by a Dinka man at or shortly before his wedding to show his eligibility and the wealth of his family in cattle. The beads themselves would either have been traded across the savannah from West Africa or brought inland from the East African coast.